In less than two weeks we’ll get to see what the SyFy take on 12 Monkeys really has to offer. For now, you can watch the 12 Monkeys opening, as the first nine minutes of the pilot episode are online.

Most of this is material that will be pretty familiar to those who know Terry Gilliam’s 1995 movie — there’s a vision of the future (2043, to be exact) in which most of civilization has been wiped out, and there’s a 2013-set scene that sets up the interaction between time-traveler James Cole (Aaron Stanford) and virologist Cassandra Railly (Amanda Schull), who may or may not be able to help Cole save the future. Check out the footage below.

Even with the similarities to Gilliam’s movie as seen here, the show is already starting to veer off onto its own path. Hopefully the series will continue into it’s own her territory. Gilliam’s film was great, and made with such a specific mindset that attempting to copy it is probably fruitless. But using it as a jumping-off point — just as Gilliam used Chris Marker’s short La Jetee as his own inspiration — could work out.

12 Monkeys begins to air on Friday starting January 16 at 9/8c on SyFy.

About ’12 Monkeys’: Based on the 1995 film directed by Terry Gilliam, 12 Monkeys follows the journey of a time traveler from the post-apocalyptic future who is on a mission to eradicate the source of a deadly plague. The series stars Aaron Stanford, Amanda Schull, Noah Bean, and Kirk Acevedo. Additional cast members include Tom Noonan as the enigmatic face of the Army of the 12 Monkeys, and Emily Hampshire as Jennifer Goines, a dangerous and unstable mental patient.